Just Your Type

There’s something for nearly everyone in this roundup of ebooks, doorstops, and reference guides—plus one naughty take on genre fiction—written by Carleton faculty and graduates

The Mind Behind the Designs

The dimensions of the new book by Karim Rashid, BID/82, are much like the personality of the New York City industrial designer: larger than average. Sketch*Karim is a coffee-table topper offering 280 pages of insight into the process of the man behind the Garbo waste can and Oh Chair, two well-known items he produced for housewares company Umbra.

Rashid has thousands of designs in production and recently finished a collection called Ottawa for Denmark’s BoConcept furniture company. Azure magazine noted that the collection shows “no obvious visual cues of the city,” though naming a collection after the place where he studied 30 years ago is indicative of a reflective state. Sketch*Karim is very much a look back, as well, in that it offers a timeline of the designer’s thoughts in sketches, computer renderings and notes to self.

While the book is a career-spanning survey, it is not a soft-lensed trip down memory lane. There are plenty of futuristic digital images, including Kairotic Loving, the spread, shown at left, of a tangled mass of machinery. The Rashid self-portrait on the back cover works in some of his pet terms (“blobject,” “globalove,” “infosthethics”). Ever mindful of form, Rashid packages his book in a peppy pink plastic cover—a fitting introduction to the man who describes his work as “the business of beauty.” Frame Publishers, $45.

—Fateema Sayani

Draw Forth

Fred Sebastian, BA/00, is part of a group of artists included in the book Illustration NOW! Vol. 4, released in September. It’s published by Taschen, the German company that puts out coffee-table tomes in full, glorious colour. The book compiles the work of groundbreaking illustrators from 30 countries with information on their career paths. Sebastian’s entry includes a Moammar Gadhafi cartoon that appeared in the Toronto Star and a painting called The Good Lawyer that appeared in Ottawa Magazine. Sebastian teaches within the school of media and design at Algonquin College in Ottawa and at OCAD University in Toronto. 448 pages, $39.99.

CINEMA

Useful CinemaEdited by Charles R. Acland, BCom/84, and Haidee Wasson
Cinema is more than Hollywood blockbusters shown at neighbourhood megaplexes. In this book, two experts from Concordia University in Montreal assemble a group of essays examining how the screening of “useful” films in the workplace, schools and other non-theatrical environments shaped our attitudes about cinema’s place in society. 400 pages, Duke University Press, $26.95.

CURRENT AFFAIRS

Academic Reform: Policy Options for Improving the Quality and Cost-Effectiveness of Undergraduate Education in OntarioBy Ian D. Clark, David Trick and Richard Van Loon, BSc/61, MA/65
Are you listening, Premier McGuinty? The authors, including Carleton’s president emeritus Richard Van Loon, offer a prescription for improving the quality, and reducing the cost, of undergraduate education—and without harming universities’ research capacity. This is a blueprint, aimed at policy makers, for a new kind of university. 316 pages, McGill-Queen’s University Press, $25.92.

The Ethics of Care: A Feminist Approach to Human SecurityBy Fiona Robinson, MA/91
Your child’s nanny seems perfect. But who’s minding the nanny’s kids while she tends yours? The “care” industry is bedevilled by ethical, political and gender issues many of us rarely ponder. Robinson, from Carleton’s political science department, walks us through that minefield. 200 pages, Temple University Press, $24.95.

Home and Native Land: Unsettling Multiculturalism in CanadaEditors May Chazan, MA/05, Lisa Helps, Anna Stanley and Sonali Thakkar
Multiculturalism, Canadian-style, has long been touted as an example for the rest of the world. But that claim is increasingly under attack. In this book, four editors and a stable of writers attempt to debunk myths about Canada’s multiculturalism policy and demonstrate how it hurts racial minorities and First Nations. 256 pages, Between the Lines, $29.95.

Living at the Tip: Navigating the Digital Tipping Point of the Book WorldBy Mark Leslie Lefebvre, BA/92
The end is nigh. So say traditional book publishers, while others argue that digital publishing means liberty, flexibility and untapped profits. Lefebvre, a prolific ebook author, believes the industry is rife with possibilities for collaboration between old and new publishing technologies. Stark Publishing, $1.99 ebook.

North America in Question: Regional Integration in an Era of Economic TurbulenceEdited by Jeffrey Ayres and Laura Macdonald
Under NAFTA, Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. experimented with an economic ménage-à-trois. But is the trading bloc now heading for the kind of rupture that threatens the EU? Experts from NAFTA countries tackle such issues in this book, which is co-edited by Laura Macdonald of Carleton’s Institute of Political Economy. 416 pages, University of Toronto Press, $32.95.

Too Many People? Population, Immigration, and the Environmental CrisisBy Ian Angus, BA/70, and Simon Butler
The earth’s growing population is often characterized as a threat to the planet’s very survival. These two authors, writing from an eco-socialist viewpoint, argue that capitalism, not overpopulation, is the real threat to the environment. 280 pages, Haymarket Books, $19.

UNHCR: The Politics and Practice of Refugee Protection, Second EditionBy Alexander Betts, Gil Loescher and James Milner
The displacement of people because of war, politics, famine or other catastrophes has become one of the globe’s most difficult issues. So just how is the world responding? To find out, read this revised book about the actions of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The three authors are James Milner from Carleton’s political science department and two Oxford academics. 198 pages, Routledge, $29.95.

FICTION

Sex and SamosasBy Jasmine Aziz, BA/90
And now for something spicy. Life for Leena is never the same after she attends a sex party. This South Asian woman begins a journey of self-discovery, experimenting with a vibrator and a samosa. Yes, a samosa. You would be surprised what delights they offer. 294 pages, Shibblie Publications, $20.36.

Twelve Drummers DrummingBy C.C. Benison, pen name of Douglas Whiteway, BJ/80
This is the first of 12 planned murder-mysteries set in England and starring an Anglican priest called Father Christmas. The next book is to be Eleven Pipers Piping. The book begins with Father Christmas discovering the body of a dead woman stuffed into a giant drum. Multiple intrigues follow. 374 pages, Doubleday Canada, $25.

Senor StigBy Jan Solberg, MJ/91
This Norwegian-language novel takes place on the southern coast of Spain, where a shabby hostel is run by a grouchy man who seems to dislike all guests, especially fellow Norwegians. One day an almost lifeless African refugee is literally washed up onshore; he becomes the catalyst for much soul-searching by the Norwegians. 288 pages, Aschehoug forlag, $52.

A Place to Call HomeBy Adrien Leduc, BA/10
In this young-adult novel, Ron and Sarah find themselves on the streets of Toronto after a harrowing escape from a bad foster home. Alone and with nowhere to go, they seek refuge at a charitable shelter. Will Ron and Sarah ever find a place to call home? Self-published ebook, $0.99.

HISTORY

All the Girls Have Gone: Alma College, the Latter YearsBy Susan Butlin, MA/95, PhD/08
Reputed to be haunted, Alma College in St. Thomas, Ont., operated from 1877 to 1988. The castle-like structure was one of the most storied women’s colleges in the country yet was eventually forced to close because of declining enrolment. Teenage arsonists destroyed the building in a spectacular fire in 2008. Butlin’s book attempts to resurrect fond memories of the college. 134 pages, Alma College International Alumnae Association and Elgin County Archives, $30.

Bloodline: A Family HistoryBy Lynne Cohen, BA/81, BJ/83
The Ottawa journalist recounts the stories of her paternal relatives, who travelled from 19th-century Russia to the New World and experienced “violence, fear and sadness.” Awaiting the family: a double murder in Nova Scotia, a deadly fire in New Brunswick and the Cuban revolution. 128 pages, Trafford Publishing, $18.

Integration and Inclusion of Newcomers and Minorities Across CanadaEdited by John Biles, Meyer Burstein, Jim Frideres, Erin Tolley and Robert Vineberg, MA/73
The federal government has the primary responsibility for immigration. But provincial, territorial and even municipal governments also play important roles in settling immigrants. This book examines the experience of each province and territory, the history of federal-provincial co-operation on immigration and the development of multiculturalism programs. 423 pages, McGill-Queen’s University Press, $39.95.

Responding to Immigrants’ Settlement Needs: The Canadian ExperienceBy Robert Vineberg, MA/73
Immigrants often arrived in Canada penniless. What services were offered to them? That question is answered in this book by Vineburg, who spent part of a long public service career handling immigration issues. This book, he says, is the first to examine the history of immigrant services, from the pre-Confederation era to the present. 105 pages, Springer, $49.95.

NON-FICTION

F-Stop: A Life in PicturesBy Emily-Jane Hills Orford, MA/97
Mom’s the word for Ottawa-based Orford. She calls her latest book a novel, but it is really a tribute to her photographer mother, Jean Hill. The book portrays Hill’s life as a series of f-stops, a frequent adjustment of the lens, both real and metaphorical, to illuminate and to understand the world around her. 452 pages, Baico Publishing, $30.

You’re Not a Country, Africa: A Personal History of the African PresentBy Pius Adesanmi
The Nigerian-born professor of literature and African studies at Carleton explores the meaning of modern Africa in this collection of essays, for which he was awarded the inaugural Penguin Prize for African Writing (non-fiction). 256 pages, Penguin Books South Africa, $19.50.

POETRY

Waking in the Tree HouseBy Michael Lithgow
This is the first collection of poems by Lithgow, a PhD student at the school of journalism and mass communication. The poems reflect curiosity, astonishment and candour as Lithgow visits such settings as a derelict rooming house, a hospital room, a junk shop, a Cape Breton farmhouse and the old Jewish Quarter in Cracow. 64 pages, Cormorant Books, $18.

POLITICS

Elusive Destiny: The Political Vocation of John Napier TurnerBy Paul Litt
John Turner was the crown prince of Canadian politics for much of his career. When Pierre Trudeau resigned in 1984, Turner replaced him as Liberal leader. But his reign as prime minister was brief, in large part because of internal party feuds. Carleton historian Paul Litt walks us through Turner’s charmed younger days and his tumultuous time as embattled Liberal leader fighting free trade. 448 pages, UBC Press, $39.95.

Graphic Guide to ConservatismBy Olivier Ballou, BPAPM/05
This darling of small-c conservatism has combined his two great loves—politics and design—to produce a book that sells in paperback or as a free downloadable (graphicguidetoconservatism.com). The book manages to translate every aspect of right-left political ideology into a simple symbol. Think of the symbols used on the doors of men’s and women’s washrooms. Then think of similar symbols that represent all that’s good and bad in politics. 117 pages, self-published, $7.74.

Pulpit and Politics: Competing Religious Ideologies in Canadian Public LifeBy Dennis Gruending, MJ/96
Church and state are separate in Canada. Or are they? This book by an Ottawa author, journalist and former NDP MP shows how small-c conservative Christians and Jews are increasingly influencing the large-c Conservative government of Stephen Harper. 238 pages, Kingsley Publishing, $22.

Seducing the VoteBy John Fenik, BSW/06
Aspiring politicians everywhere might want to read this book by the mayor of Perth, Ont. Fenik has served continuously in municipal politics since 1997. Seducing the Vote combines humour with tips for veterans and rookies alike on how to win elections. 99 pages, Fenik Publishing, $19.

TECHNOLOGY

Inside IRAP: Inspiring Industrial Innovation in CanadaBy William Coderre, BSc/63
Coderre provides an insider’s view of the growth and development of the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program. The author incorporates memories of IRAP’s key players and offers recommendations for improving Canada’s science and technology infrastructure. 358 pages, Blurb, $19.20.